By THERESA HOGUE
Gazette-Times reporter | Posted: Tuesday, November 28, 2006 12:00 am
Gertrude Strowbridge isn't sure what all the fuss is about.
As two big birthday cakes were wheeled by her table at Stoneybrook Assisted Living Center, she shook her head.
"It's very nice of people," she said, but really, after 105 birthdays, there's no sense in making a fuss.
"I made it this far," she said. "It's the number."
But while Strowbridge would rather not have a big commotion made over her, she didn't mind a small piece of cake, as long as everyone else received one too.
Strowbridge was born Nov. 24, 1901, in Detroit, Mich., but moved to Portland with her family at age 4. She grew up near Grant High School, although the school wasn't built until long after she graduated from Jefferson High School in downtown Portland.
In the mid-1920s, with her eye set on college, Strowbridge got a full-time job to save money to pay her tuition. She enrolled at Oregon State University in the College of Business with the Class of 1928. She is currently the oldest living business alumna/alumnus.
"I was crazy about it," she said of being part of the College of Business. "It made my whole future."
During her time at OSU, she was a member of Gamma Phi fraternal organization, where she first picked up her love of bridge. She also had a lifelong passion for golf, and giving it up was hard to do.
While she loved being on campus, she said it was a very different place than it is today.
"You never saw a pair of jeans," she said. "People dressed up. It was a wonderful time to be there."
The campus was far smaller in the late 1920s, and there were no cars allowed.
"Everybody was walking anywhere they wanted to," she said. "It's too big now."
Strowbridge still keeps tabs on her alma mater, and has nothing but praise for the current dean, Ilene Kleinsorge.
"She's wonderful in that department," she said.
During her junior year, Strowbridge married her long-time beau, Edward, and she spent the next few decades raising their son, Edward Junior. In 1952, her husband passed away and at the age of 50 Strowbridge went back to work. She got a job as manager of a private medical practice with five doctors, and for the next 18 years, she kept the office in order.
Her son inherited her love of learning, and earned his PhD in education, joining the faculty at the College of Education at OSU. In 2000, he died of Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS).
"It was the worst thing that ever happened to me," Strowbridge said.
But she's still surrounded by relatives, including two grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
"They're a barrel of accomplishments," she said proudly. "They're really super. They're mostly in (the field of) education."
Strowbridge is planning on seeing her family over the Christmas holiday, but dryly said she'll see if she makes it to Christmas. Although her mind is sharp, her health has "ups and downs."
"I'm keeping my fingers crossed," she said.
Just before her birthday, Strowbridge was asked a series of questions about her life by Stoneybrook staff. She was asked what advice she'd give to others, after living such a long life.
"Go out and do the best you can," she said. "Think about it long and hard, and do what you think is right."
Theresa Hogue is features reporter for the Gazette-Times. She can be reached by e-mail at theresa.hogue@lee.net or by phone at 758-9526.